Entry 1 - 3/14/07

1. What are some of the previous research projects you have done?
In sixth grade, I remember two research projects. We did the "I Hear America Singing" project, I researched Betsy Coleman. We also did an I-Search project in English, and I did a project on the influence of drugs on the juvenile crime rate. In seventh grade we did several research projects in social studies, all of them were about Louisiana. This year we had the Labyrinth project.

2. Based on these projects, what does research mean to you?
To me, research means finding facts about a topic you are trying to answer questions about. To me, research also
means putting the work of several other people together to get new ideas.

3. Describe one of your research successes or failures. Why was the experience positive or negative?
The I search project i did in sixth grade was a positive experience. I think I liked it so much because we got to choose a topic we were interested in.

Teacher Response 3-15-07
Good, thorough answers. Very good definition of research.
10 points

Entry 2 - 3/15/07

1. I think the webbing process helped/did not help me find a topic because:
I think the webbing processed helped me to organize my thoughts, although it did not exactly help me find a topic because I had to think of a topic before I could put it into the graphic organizer. The webbing did help me to think of subtopics because I could just focus on one topic at a time.

Teacher Response 3-16-07
10 points

Entry 3 - 3/15/27

1. Topic:
The Contributions of Venecian Merchants to Renaissance Art

2. Why you chose it:
I found it very interesting that the financial succes of Venecian merchants had such a large influence on Renaissance art.

3. What you already know about your topic:
During the Renaissance, Venice was a large trading hub. The wealthy merchants wanted to be known as patrons of the arts. So with the merchants' money artists were able to study and improve there talents while still having a roof over their head. Because of this, art in the Rennaissance flourished.

Teacher Response 3-16-07
10 points

Entry 4 - 3/16/07

  1. Who were some of the best-known Venetian patrons of art during the renaissance?
  2. What artists did those patrons fund?
  3. What kinds of goods were traded in Venice?
  4. What was life like in renaissance Venice?
  5. How did merchants become so wealthy?
  6. Why was Venice such a big trade hub?
  7. Why would merchants even want to be a patron?
  8. Why did artists need the funding of merchants?
  9. What could renaissance art have been like if there was no funding from wealthy merchants?
  10. Why was there all of a sudden so much talent
  11. How did the merchants find an artist to fund?
  12. Where were the main art centers in the renaissance?
  13. Why were patrons of art so highly thought of?
14. How did venetian merchants contribute to renaissance art?
      • Could you please approve my questions? Number 14 is the fat question I think I will use.


Teacher Response 3-21-07
10 points
That is a good fat question. Do you have your skinny questions figured out?

Entry 5 - 3/19/07

1. Describe how the pre-notetaking sheet helped you find both focus for your topic and research questions to investigate. Did you find it easy or difficult to create a fat question from your ideas?
I thought the pre-notetaking sheet helped alot because it really helped me to think about what there was to learn about my topic. I think it is easier to research if there are questions to answer. It was very easy for me to make a fat question because if you put my topic in question form, it is a fat question.

Teacher Response 3-21-07
10 points


=You need to keep up with your Search Log entries! ----
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Entry 6 - 3/26/07

1. What have I learned today? I found an article that references a lot of books about my topic.
2. What problems have I had? The Databases did not have many relevent articles.
3. How will I overcome the problem(s)? I will try and use other databases I haven't tried.
4. What will I do next? I will continue researching,